


Misery Business (Jin Akutsu)

by TheRainRogue



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis
Genre: Fluff, Friendship, One Shot, Other, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:01:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24452563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheRainRogue/pseuds/TheRainRogue
Summary: You walked down the halls of Rikkaidai junior high with your mind drifting off. Most everyone at Rikkaidai knew who you were, rather by your fiery nature or by the fact that you were best friends with Masaharu Niou, the trickster and tennis regular of Rikkaidai.
Relationships: Akutsu Jin/Reader
Kudos: 2
Collections: Anime, One Shots





	Misery Business (Jin Akutsu)

  * **Genre** : Friendship, Slice of Life, Fluff ☁
  * **Word Count** : 3,296 ☁
  * **Pairing** : Reader x Akutsu ☁
  * **World** : Anime, Prince of Tennis ☁
  * **Song** : “Misery Business”, Paramore ☁



━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

> _I never meant to brag but I got him where I want him now._

You walked down the halls of Rikkaidai junior high with your mind drifting off. Most everyone at Rikkaidai knew who you were, rather by your fiery nature or by the fact that you were best friends with Masaharu Niou, the trickster and tennis regular of Rikkaidai.

“Y/N!” Niou called, catching up to you and wrapping his arm around your shoulder.

“Something I can help you with, Niou?” you asked, glancing at the silver-haired boy before looking forward.

He grinned, “I wanna come over.”

“What for?” you cocked an eyebrow at the trickster.

“Bonding time,”

You weren’t fooled by his words and heard the hidden intentions behind them.  
Scoffing, you pushed the boy’s arm off. “You only want to come over for free food.”

“Puri~”

“Fine, fine.” you sighed, leaving the school and heading out the gates, Niou following close beside you. You noticed Niou’s grin growing as you reached Kawamura Sushi and slid the door open, stepping into the air-conditioned room.

“Welcome home,” your father smiled as he looked up, “And you brought a friend.”

“Hello again, Mr. Kawamura.” He smiled politely. His hidden intention? He wanted free food.

Your father chuckled, “Have a seat, Masaharu. I’ll fix you up some sushi.”

“Thank you~!” he sat down at the bar, waiting patiently while your dad made some food for the two of you.

“Is Takashi home yet?” you asked, settling on the stool beside Niou.

The elder Kawamura shook his head, “Not yet. Should be soon, though. He’s supposed to be bringing a friend home, too.”

“A friend? Who is it?”

“Aku… Aka… Akulu… Something with an A.” he mused thoughtfully, trying hard to remember the name of his son’s friend.

“Akutsu?” you suggested.

“That’s it! Akutsu!” he grinned, setting a plate down between the two of you.

You scowled, glaring down at the food while Niou stuffed his face. You weren’t too fond of Jin Akutsu and didn’t exactly approve of him hanging out with Takashi. Of course, you had no right to voice that opinion, just as Takashi kept his mouth shut about who _you_ hung out with. It was only fair that you show your brother the same respect that he showed you.

“Isn’t he a really violent person?” asked Niou after Mr. Kawamura retreated to the backroom.

You nodded, taking a bite of the wonderfully prepared Sushi in front of you, “He’s always getting into fights. A real jerk, too. He’s bad news, and bad for Takashi.”

“You sound like he’s gonna rub off on ’em or something. Puri~”

“It’s possible. When someone spends enough time with another person, they tend to rub off.”

He chuckled, swallowing another piece of sushi before opening his mouth to speak, “He’s too soft for that. If anything, he’ll be the one rubbing off.”

You heaved a sigh, resting your head in the palm of your hand. “I guess you’re right.”

“I always am~,” he said, his tone laced with arrogance as a smirk graced his features.

You laughed, causing him to stick his tongue out at you.

“What’s so funny?”

Turning around, you saw Takashi and Akutsu standing in the doorway. Takashi was looking between the two of you, a mix of curiosity and worry showing in his deep brown eyes; he didn’t approve of Niou, after all. Akutsu was standing next to him, a scowl on his face as he glared at everything his golden eyes landed on.

Akutsu hated you about as much as you hated him.

“Nothing,” you answered simply, turning back around as your father came back, smiling at his son.

“Welcome home, Takashi!”

Niou sniggered, covering his mouth with his hand in an attempt to hide his laughter. You shot him a look, which caused him to shake even harder with unheard laughter. A few minutes passed by before he calmed down, throwing his arm around you. “So tell me, am I rubbing off on you? Or is it the other way around?”

“By my calculations, it’s a bit of both.” Came a familiar voice. You turned around to find Renji Yanagi standing at the door, a kind smile lighting up his features. He took a seat next to Niou. “You’re both rubbing off on each other.”

You and Niou exchanged glances before shrugging.

“Ah, hello Renji!” your dad grinned, “Hungry?”

Renji nodded in a polite manner, “Thank you for having me.”

The older male waved his hand, “Any friend of my kids is more than welcome.”

“Thank you.” Renji smiled, nodding his head to show his gratitude.

“Think _he_ rubs off on us?” Niou whispered, nodding his head toward Renji.

You shrugged, a thoughtful expression taking over your features, “It’s possible.”

“It’s weird to think about.”

“Now that you mention it, it kinda is.” you chuckled, fiddling with the silver dog tags that hung around your neck.

“I resent that.” Renji murmured softly, not even glancing toward the two of you.

Renji was the Fuji Shusuke of Rikkaidai. Quiet, but still voicing his opinion. Always keeping his eyes closed, opening them only when he’s dead serious about something. He’s smart, kind, and can even be a bit sadistic, as well.

“No harm intended, Ren-san.” you chuckled, sending an apologetic glance his way.

Renji was, after all, one of the few people you respected and looked up to. He also happened to be a close friend and fellow tennis player. Yes, you also play tennis, but you never take it quite as seriously as your friends do. It’s more of a past time, or a hobby, rather than something you wanted to spend your life doing.

“Y/N,” came your brother’s gentle voice. You glanced over. He was rubbing the back of his neck nervously while looking down at a piece of paper held in his free hand. “Um… Momo invited me to go play pool with him tomorrow. I was wondering if you’d like to come…?”

“He invited you, not me, Taka,” you responded, “Thank you, though.”

“He said I could invite people if I wanted,” he added, silently pleading with his brown puppy dog eyes.

“She’ll go if we can come, too~” Niou interjected with a grin.

Akutsu scowled, glaring at the silver-haired male who simply smirked in return. Renji, who had gotten his food and began eating, put his hand on Niou’s shoulder, a silent sign telling him to be quiet.

“S-Sure! Both of you can come if you’d like.” Takashi told the two before glancing at you.

“What do ya say, Y/N?” Niou grinned as you glared at him.

“Whatever,” you responded, flicking him in the forehead, “If Renji is going, I have nothing to worry about.”

“I take that as a compliment.” Renji smiled at you, which you returned easily.

Niou looked between the two of you, confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“For one, he’ll keep you under control and off my nerves,” you responded with a shrug.

“No matter what the challenge, it’ll be easy for me to win. Pool is no challenge, really.” Renji finished as he took the last bite of his food.

“Cocky, ne?” Niou chuckled at him.

Renji had plenty of reasons to be cocky, after all. His grades were even more amazing than the tensai of Rikkaidai, excelling in math more than any other subject. His data was rivaled to that of even Sadaharu Inui of Seigaku. His tennis skills have always been awe-inspiring and his ability to pick up the slightest of details tends to amaze more than the average amount of people.

“He has the right to be cocky. It’s more of a confidence thing, anyway,” you stood up, heading for the stairs. The silverette shrugged before standing up and following. Renji stood, as well before bowing, thanking the Kawamura Sushi owner before following suit.

You fell onto your bed with a grunt as Niou plopped down on top of you, resting his head on your stomach. Renji took to the desk chair, flipping through the homework that lay open and unfinished.

“Weren’t you supposed to turn this in today?” Renji questioned, already knowing the answer.

“Probably. Math really sucks, Ren-san.” you sighed deeply, resting your arm over your closed eyes.

“Is that why the teacher was yelling at you this morning?” Niou wondered.

“Yeah. I actually forgot about that,”

“How do you forget being yelled at for ten minutes?” he scoffed.

“I wasn’t listening to what he said. All I heard was _‘blah, blah, trouble, blah, blah, math, blah blah, homework’_.” you retorted, tone laced with sarcasm. Your math teacher was the worst of the worst, so you tended to just tune him out.

Niou chuckled at your carelessness before attempting to take a nap, using you as a pillow. The only sound in the room was the scraping of the pencil that Renji used as he went over your homework. This is usually how it went when the two boys came over.

You would collapse on the bed, exhausted from the annoying barking of the teachers at school. Niou would jump on top of you, using you as a pillow as he attempted to fall into his own dreams of mischief, and Renji would find your unfinished work – which usually only consisted of math – and do it for you.

When you first started hanging out with Renji, you protested, telling him he didn’t have to help you but he’d just wave you off and do it anyway. _“It won’t take me long to finish it. You’ll take forever and fail”,_ he had said.

Normally, you would have gotten mad at being insulted, but Renji was someone you looked up to and you were grateful that he cared enough about you that he was willing to prevent you from failing. You also weren’t afraid to admit that you were more than happy to have him do it than to do it yourself.

━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

“ _Wake up, Y/N._ ”

A groan escaped your lips as you looked up at the person incessantly shaking you. You were met with your brother’s brown eyes as he smiled down at you. “Niou, Yanagi, and Akutsu are here already. Hurry up and get dressed.”

After Takashi left the room, you quickly got ready and went downstairs, eyebrows raised at the sight. Renji was sitting quietly, paying no attention to the other two boys, while Niou and Akutsu were glaring daggers at each other from across the table. Marui had decided to come as well, sitting next to Renji, blowing a green bubble, popping it, and then doing it over again.

“Hey, guys.”

Renji stood, smiling warmly. “Ready?”

You nodded, walking out of Kawamura Sushi with the rest of the group. Takashi was at the front, Akutsu at his side. Marui was right behind them. You were at the back, walking between Renji and Niou.

Akutsu kept glaring over his shoulder at Niou, who’d snigger and smirk in return. He also made a point to put his arm around your shoulder and pull you closer which, for some unknown reason, made Akutsu’s face darken and his glare harden. You glanced at Renji, who had a knowing look on his face. He shook his head at you, a silent sign telling you that he’d explain later.

Once the group arrived at the pool hall, they were greeted by Sadaharu Inui, Shuusuke Fuji, Takeshi Momoshiro, and Eiji Kikumaru.

“Y/N-chan!” Eiji grinned, pushing past the boys and glomping you.

You chuckled, ruffling the boy’s red hair, “Good to see you, Kikucat.”

“Kikucat?” Niou raised his eyebrow at the nickname.

“He’s very cat-like, so my nickname for him is Kikucat,” you explained simply, walking over to Shusuke and giving him a hug, which he happily returned.

“Good to see you again, Y/N.” he smiled at you before turning to look at the two Rikkaidai boys, “Yanagi. Niou.”

“Oh, come now! We’re friends, right, Fuji? Puri~” smirked Niou who went over and draped an arm around both your and Shusuke’s shoulders.

“I suppose so.” he smiled, holding onto his own personal pool cue. He was, after all, one of the best pool players in the area.

“Renji.” Inui greeted, holding his hand out for the brown-haired boy to shake.

“Sadaharu.” Renji returned his greeting, shaking his hand and nodding his head in acknowledgment.

“You guys really should be more friendly. You’re childhood friends, after all,” you told them as you looked between the two data users.

They both glanced at you before walking away to talk quietly amongst themselves. Eiji came over and clung to your side while Niou and Fuji started up a conversation. Eiji was eventually pulled away and went to play a game with Marui, while Takashi and Momoshiro started a conversation, as well, leaving Akutsu and you to fend for yourselves.

He moved to lean against one of the unoccupied pool tables, his hands in his pockets and a scowl on his face. You stood rooted to the spot, refusing to look at the grey-haired male.

“Oi,” he called, making you look up at him, eyes guarded and somewhat cold. “Play me.”

You raised a brow in question, “And why would I want to play with you?”

“We’ll make a bet,” he responded, ignoring your attitude.

“A bet?” He caught your interest with that one simple word and he knew it.

He nodded, a smirk making its way to his lips, “That’s right.”

“The terms?”

“If I win, you become my slave for the next two weeks.” His smirk grew as he held two fingers up.

You scowled at the thought, but it turned up into a smirk. “And when _I_ win?”

“Pretty cocky, aren’t you? _If_ you win, I’ll become your slave for the next _three_ weeks,” he answered, holding up three fingers this time.

You pondered his words for a moment before nodding your head in agreement, “Fine,”

“I’ll break,” He smirked, grabbing a cue and positioning himself. He shot the ball and, almost instantly, sunk the one, two, and three. He moved and hit again, almost sinking the number four, but missing.

You smirked and easily sunk the four ball, moving onto the number five, which you also sunk fairly easily. Now, the number six ball was in a position that made it fairly difficult to hit. You grinned, though, remembering a familiar technique.

You sat on the table, being careful to keep one foot on the ground, and held the cue up straight. From there, you hit the top of the cue ball, making it spin rapidly, going around the eight ball – which was in the way – and hitting the six ball. The ball bounced against the side before coming back and stopping just before sinking. You scowled and Akutsu smirked.

You knew what was going through his mind. He could easily hit the six ball from that position and have it hit the nine ball, sinking it with no problem. From there, he’d win the game. Akutsu licked his lips before hitting the six ball and making it go back towards the nine ball, which fell into the pocket.

You glared at the grey-haired male as he smirked, leaning back against the table.

“Your slavery starts tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

Growling, you made a move to pounce on him. Before you could reach him, though, you were grabbed and pulled back against someone’s chest. Looking up, you saw Renji looking down at you, his arm firmly around your waist so that you couldn’t move. His expression was clear.

You scoffed, muttered a _“whatever”_ and looked away. Akutsu glared at Renji, unhappy about how close the two of you were. Seeing this, Renji’s grip tightened, pulling you a little bit closer.

 _‘It seems my theory was correct’_ , Renji thought as he examined the fierce glare he was receiving.

“Let’s go!” Marui grinned, “Yukimura-buchou is treating us to lunch.”

“Awww. Can’t you guys stay a little longer?” Eiji pouted, not wanting the fun to end just yet.

“Puri~ We can’t keep the buchou waiting,” Niou told them, heading for the exit with a wave over his shoulder. Marui grinned, waving frantically as he followed.

“Let’s go,” Renji murmured softly, turning around with his arm still around you. You nodded, walking at his side as you exited the building together. Marui and Niou were walking a few feet ahead, arguing over something stupid, while you and Renji walked slowly behind.

“Tell me something,” Renji spoke after a few seconds of silence. “What deal did he make with you?”

You blinked, surprised at the question as you looked up at him, “Slave for two weeks.”

“I should have guessed.” he murmured softly.

“Something you not telling me, Ren-san?”

“How does Akutsu act when you’re around?” he inquired.

“Uh, like a jerk…?” you couldn’t help but be curious as to where he was going with this.

He nodded in a thoughtful manner, as you headed for the cafe you always met your captain at. You had to be curious about his words but ended up shaking them off and setting them to the side.

━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

It’s been a little over a week since you became Akutsu’s slave and, you had to say, it’s been torture. He’s been running you absolutely ragged!

“Hurry up, brat!” He called over his shoulder. You were carrying his school bag, which had been loaded with at least seven thick school books, which you knew he’s never even _looked_ at before, and the two of you were headed to his house.

“ _Jerk_ ,” you muttered under your breath, readjusting the strap on your shoulder.

His golden eyes narrowed as he paused in front of his house. “What was that?”

Forcing a smile, you tried to ignore the twitch of your eye. “Nothing, nothing~”

He humphed before unlocking the door and stepping inside. He didn’t bother holding the door for you and it knocked into you when you went to enter, making you grumble profanities under your breath as you stepped inside. The house was small but warm and comfortable, quite the opposite of what you expected given how cold Akutsu was.

“Start making dinner, brat,” he ordered before falling onto the couch and flicking on the television. “Get it done quickly and then get the hell out.”

You rolled your eyes, letting his bag fall onto the floor before setting yours beside it and entering the tiny kitchen. “What the hell am I supposed to make?”

“Figure it out,” he grunted, turning the volume louder.

 _‘How in the hell did I get into this mess?’_ , you sighed, pulling open the fridge. A plate of raw meat was wrapped in plastic, waiting to be cooked. A glance in the cabinet and you found some bread crumbs. _‘Shake and bake, it is!’_

As you set the food on the counter, you noticed a crumpled up note by the sink. Curious, you peeked around the doorway to make sure Akutsu wouldn’t walk in on you – his eyes were glued to the TV still – and then you reached for it, smoothing it out on the counter.

The words written were elegant and neat. _[I have to work late tonight, but I’ll make dinner as soon as I get home. Stay out of trouble, please. Love, mom ♡]_

You frowned at the note. _‘That must be why he wanted me to make dinner, so his mom didn’t have to.’_

“I don’t hear any cooking, brat!”

“I’m workin’ on it, shaddup!” You retorted, crumpling the note and putting it back where you found it. Fighting back your smile, you got to work on the food, unaware of the golden eyes watching you.

> _But god does it feel so good,_   
>  _‘Cause I got ’em where I want ’em now._

━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━


End file.
